Validation of the 6-minute race test as a predictor of maximal aerobic speed in university endurance athletes

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Ojeda, Álvaro Huerta^{a; b; f; *} | Maliqueo, Sergio Andrés Galdames^{c; f} | Pizarro, Juan Ignacio Peña^d | Kloss, Rodrigo Fuentes^e

Affiliations: [a] Facultad de Educación, Escuela de Educación Física, Universidad de las Américas sede Viña del Mar, Viña del Mar, Chile | [b] Grupo de Investigación en Salud, Actividad Física y Deporte, Universidad de Las Américas sede Viña del Mar, Viña del Mar, Chile | [c] Facultad de Ciencias de la Actividad Física y del Deporte, Universidad de Playa Ancha de Ciencias de la Educación, Valparaíso, Chile | [d] Magíster en Ciencias de la Actividad Física y del Deporte, Universidad de Playa Ancha de Ciencias de la Educación, Valparaíso, Chile | [e] Facultad de Ciencias Médicas, Carrera de Kinesiología, Universidad de Santiago, Santiago, Chile | [f] Centro de Capacitación e Investigación Deportiva Alpha Sports, Valparaíso, Chile

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Álvaro Huerta Ojeda, Grupo de Investigación en Salud, Actividad Física y Deporte, Universidad de Las Américas sede Viña del Mar, Viña del Mar, Chile. Tel.: +56 97 7798 0432; E-mail: achuertao@yahoo.es.

Abstract: BACKGROUND: The maintenance of maximal aerobic speed (MAS) until exhaustion is an important parameter for the evaluation of sports performance and prescription and planning of training. OBJECTIVE: To validate a 6-minute race test (6MRT) as a predictor of MAS in university endurance athletes. METHODS: Twenty two university endurance athletes (12 males and 10 females) were part of the study. The design was pre-experimental. The primary variables were the time of maintenance of the MAS on the field through a Time Limit Test (Tlim test), and the VO2 max (laboratory and field). The statistical analysis of the time and ventilatory variables was carried out using descriptive statistics; the comparison between males and females for all variables was carried out through a t-Student test for independent samples (p< 0.05). RESULTS: The performance in the Tlim test was 356.4 ± 52.9 and 327.0 ± 120.2 s in males and females, respectively. CONCLUSION: Based on the time of maintenance of the MAS (Tlim test), the 6MRT is a valid test to determine the MAS in university endurance male athletes. However, the MAS in university endurance female athletes must be evaluated with a shorter test (between 5 and 5.30 minutes long).

Keywords: Maximal aerobic speed, maximal oxygen uptake, time limit test, university endurance athletes

DOI: 10.3233/IES-192229

Journal: Isokinetics and Exercise Science, vol. 28, no. 4, pp. 383-390, 2020